patio
06-06-2009, 08:27 PM
For some time Clinotus and I talked about building short barreled rifles; but then finally we put our money where our mouths were and made it happen. Thankfully for both of us we were able to beat the rush and hording the new administration brought with it; still living in a blue state means that there is still a premium for building a short barreled rifle.
March 2008
As soon as my tax refund was in my pocket I ran out to find a decently priced pre-ban AR-15 (or lower). Sure enough I came home the say day with a pre-ban AR and GSG-5. With the rifle in hand it was time to start the Form 1 paperwork.
http://230grain.com/images/rsrh/ar_alwayscompliantsm.jpg
Lock on to ensure MA compliance!
April 2008
Not long after I picked up the pre-ban rifle I scheduled an appointment at my local police department to get my paperwork signed off and my fingerprints taken. This process was easier than getting my firearms permit and was wrapped up in just under a week from drop off to signed and finger prints. Signed papers and finger prints in hand I ran to the post off and mailed everything off. To pass the time I got the ball rolling and bought ~$50 of parts with each paycheck waiting for approval.
May 2008
To meet the engraving requirement I reached out to Orion Arms who, for a very reasonable fee, engraved the required information on the front of the mag well and returned the lower to me in just under a week.
June 2008
After getting the freshly engraved lower back in my hand I contacted a local gunsmith to get the lower blasted, cleaned and re-anodized. This lower had been beat to hell and really deserved this make-over. This took almost the full month of June but there was no real rush.
Also, it didn't help that I destroyed a large area while breaking it down to send to Orion.
http://230grain.com/images/rsrh/ar_ughthisisgoingtocostme%20sm.jpg
July 2008
July came and went with little excitement; at this point I was doing my homework to find just the right upper. Having a few other ARs in the house meant I wasn't about to place any orders (even with 6-8 week backorders) until I had a canceled stamp in hand.
August 2008
Late August received a phone call from my ATF examiner asking me to provide a copy of my firearms license while I was on vacation. The next morning I found a Kinko's where I scanned and emailed a copy of both sides of my license and within an hour received an email acknowledging my Form 1 approval.
September 2008
When the paperwork hit my door step I immediately fired off orders for two SBR uppers. The primary upper was to be a Noveske 10.5" CQB 5.56mm Upper; a secondary Spike's Tactical 5.5" .22LR Upper with YHM Light Weight Rail was purchased to keep my ammo costs low and allow me to shoot indoors through the cold Winter. Both uppers would ship and be received before the close of the month.
http://230grain.com/images/rsrh/Noveske%20004.jpg
http://230grain.com/images/rsrh/SBR_Spikes_NES.jpg
October 2008
I threw an EoTech I had laying around on the Spikes, but added QD lever. This lower is so short that iron sights don't make any sense.
For the Noveske upper I purchased an Aimpoint Comp ML2 w/LaRue Cantilever Tactical QD Mount; but was still itching for a good set of iron sights as this would THE rifle in my collection.
November 2008
I can't pass up a good deal; while the trigger that I had been running gave me not troubles I couldn't resist added a Timney AR-15 Skeletonized 3# Trigger purchased from a local forum's group buy.
December 2008
Finally, after a few patient mouths I was able to score some Troy Folding Battlesight Set (HK Front) from a group buy to complete my SBR build.
Looking back this was a fun project, but an expensive project. That said, I would not trade it for anything. I know many will probably balk at the total cost of this build, but to me it was worth every penny.
Cost breakdown:
Pre-ban rifle: $1,200.00
Tax Stamp: $200.00
Parts: $622.26
Accessories: $873.88
Labor: $177.00
Shipping: $71.45
Uppers: $1,753.00
Total: $4,897.49
Now hopefully we will see an exciting SBR thread out of Clinotus; he has been up to no good out there in the hills of Western MA. So while gun laws and politics of the blue state may be stupid, it is not impossible to get your SBR on if you really put the time and money into it.
March 2008
As soon as my tax refund was in my pocket I ran out to find a decently priced pre-ban AR-15 (or lower). Sure enough I came home the say day with a pre-ban AR and GSG-5. With the rifle in hand it was time to start the Form 1 paperwork.
http://230grain.com/images/rsrh/ar_alwayscompliantsm.jpg
Lock on to ensure MA compliance!
April 2008
Not long after I picked up the pre-ban rifle I scheduled an appointment at my local police department to get my paperwork signed off and my fingerprints taken. This process was easier than getting my firearms permit and was wrapped up in just under a week from drop off to signed and finger prints. Signed papers and finger prints in hand I ran to the post off and mailed everything off. To pass the time I got the ball rolling and bought ~$50 of parts with each paycheck waiting for approval.
May 2008
To meet the engraving requirement I reached out to Orion Arms who, for a very reasonable fee, engraved the required information on the front of the mag well and returned the lower to me in just under a week.
June 2008
After getting the freshly engraved lower back in my hand I contacted a local gunsmith to get the lower blasted, cleaned and re-anodized. This lower had been beat to hell and really deserved this make-over. This took almost the full month of June but there was no real rush.
Also, it didn't help that I destroyed a large area while breaking it down to send to Orion.
http://230grain.com/images/rsrh/ar_ughthisisgoingtocostme%20sm.jpg
July 2008
July came and went with little excitement; at this point I was doing my homework to find just the right upper. Having a few other ARs in the house meant I wasn't about to place any orders (even with 6-8 week backorders) until I had a canceled stamp in hand.
August 2008
Late August received a phone call from my ATF examiner asking me to provide a copy of my firearms license while I was on vacation. The next morning I found a Kinko's where I scanned and emailed a copy of both sides of my license and within an hour received an email acknowledging my Form 1 approval.
September 2008
When the paperwork hit my door step I immediately fired off orders for two SBR uppers. The primary upper was to be a Noveske 10.5" CQB 5.56mm Upper; a secondary Spike's Tactical 5.5" .22LR Upper with YHM Light Weight Rail was purchased to keep my ammo costs low and allow me to shoot indoors through the cold Winter. Both uppers would ship and be received before the close of the month.
http://230grain.com/images/rsrh/Noveske%20004.jpg
http://230grain.com/images/rsrh/SBR_Spikes_NES.jpg
October 2008
I threw an EoTech I had laying around on the Spikes, but added QD lever. This lower is so short that iron sights don't make any sense.
For the Noveske upper I purchased an Aimpoint Comp ML2 w/LaRue Cantilever Tactical QD Mount; but was still itching for a good set of iron sights as this would THE rifle in my collection.
November 2008
I can't pass up a good deal; while the trigger that I had been running gave me not troubles I couldn't resist added a Timney AR-15 Skeletonized 3# Trigger purchased from a local forum's group buy.
December 2008
Finally, after a few patient mouths I was able to score some Troy Folding Battlesight Set (HK Front) from a group buy to complete my SBR build.
Looking back this was a fun project, but an expensive project. That said, I would not trade it for anything. I know many will probably balk at the total cost of this build, but to me it was worth every penny.
Cost breakdown:
Pre-ban rifle: $1,200.00
Tax Stamp: $200.00
Parts: $622.26
Accessories: $873.88
Labor: $177.00
Shipping: $71.45
Uppers: $1,753.00
Total: $4,897.49
Now hopefully we will see an exciting SBR thread out of Clinotus; he has been up to no good out there in the hills of Western MA. So while gun laws and politics of the blue state may be stupid, it is not impossible to get your SBR on if you really put the time and money into it.